Sugar Maple Festival Activity Report Corn Fritter Booth 2014

Transcription

1 Sugar Maple Festival Activity Report Corn Fritter Booth 2014 Preparation/Set-up: The Corn Fritter Booth information and responsibilities were turned over to Rick Bozard, as Booster President, from Doug Cozad. I (Todd Charlesworth) agreed to take over the Corn Fritter Booth and received the information from Rick. The Sugar Maple Festival representative (Michelle Main) sent a confirmation letter letting us know that we have a confirmed location for the Sugar Maple Festival. We would have had to contact the Festival committee if we had not received the confirmation letter. Rick had already contacted the Greene County Combined Health Department (GCCHD) and applied for our Temporary Food Service Operation License. License applications need to be submitted at least three days in advance of the festival, three to six weeks before is better. The point of contact that was passed on to me was Jon Deak ( or , jdeak@gcchd.org), but anyone in the office should be able to help. I contacted the Bellbrook fire department, through the Admin Office ( / ) about two weeks before the festival requesting to barrow a fire extinguisher. Because we are heating oil we are required to have a larger (5 pound ABC) K or CO2 extinguisher that has been serviced within the last year. Gregg Nartker, from the Bellbrook Fire Department, called to let me know that they had a fire extinguisher that we could barrow. The point of contact for the Saturday morning pick up was Gregg, Anthony Bizzarro, or Athena Haus, located at the Bellbrook Fire Department booth. There were a number of items that were passed on for use with the Corn Fritter Booth but I also used some items from the Bird Feeder (see attached supply list). The Boosters have a double fryer that has been stored in the Band Barn but when I picked it up the propane hose was taped at one end, it could have been to prevent leaking so for safety reasons I chose not to use it until everything could be repaired/replaced. I ended up using the burners from the Bird Feeder along with my Dutch oven to heat the oil. I planned my shopping list based on 35 to 40 batches. Some items were easy to figure out the total amount required was and some items were just a guess. I took Friday (25 Apr) to get everything bought and ready. I should have started checking on equipment and supplies earlier because of problems like the fryer propane line. We put together 35 bags of dry ingredients on Friday night, knowing that it did not need refrigeration or anything to keep it good, and anything we did not use on Saturday could be used on Sunday. We made 24 bags of the wet ingredients but had three of them start leaking (that is what I get for using cheap bags) so we only ended up with 21.

2 We went to Bellbrock Park Friday afternoon and set up the canopy, left the tables and trash can. We are only supposed to have a 10-foot by 10-foot area but the only canopy that we ended up with was my 13-foot by 13-foot pentagon shaped one. We went and picked up seed money/change from the Bank to start the event. With enough advance coordination, we might have been able to get it from the Booster Treasure but we chose to use our money instead. We picked up $30 in 5-dollar bills, $20 in 1-dollar bills, and $20 in quarters. We ran out of quarters Saturday afternoon. Quite a few people asked What are Corn Fritters? so it is important for all individuals working to know what they are. I quickly realized through the event that the Corn Fritter Booth is not just about making money. There are a number of people that come to the festival yearly just to get Corn Fritters. We also had one of Dr. Keating s (whose original recipe we use) friends come by. I think we need to find ways to improve our profits but I am also convinced that we need to continue the tradition of Corn Fritters in Bellbrook. I set up the volunteer schedule in two-hour shifts, except the first shift on Saturday (which was one hour); with a minimum of two people each. In the past, they used three-hour shifts but two hour shifts worked for me. Since I was there, doing the frying all day, two additional people were enough, there usually needs to be three total in the booth. We did have some times with three additional people, which was ok if two of them were students but when there were four adults, it was almost too much for our current operation. Saturday Operations: Rick Bozard and I headed to Bellbrock Park about 7:30 Saturday morning. You have to get there early to be able to park on the west side of North Main Street across from the park. The power outlet right by the booth was not working but Rick found another one to get us power. Rick also went to the Bellbrook Fire Department to pick up the fire extinguisher while I set up the food area. I used the burner and a large pot to boil water. I had brought one insulated water jug with warm water already in it for the hand washing station. We boiled water and got the dishwater ready for the Food Inspector. I prefer to use a commercial sanitizer instead of bleach because I find it easier to use and more effective. When the Food Inspector arrived, he looked at our set up, checked the chemical balance of the sanitizer water, the temperature of the cold food in the cooler, and ensured we had all of the correct cleaning requirements and thermometers in place. Once the Inspector was satisfied, he provided us with our license to operate and sell food.

3 One of the biggest problems we experienced was being able to maintain the oil temperature throughout the frying process. When the oil gets to hot the fritters burn on the outside but are not cooked in the center. 350 degrees seems to be a good temperature, if you can maintain it there. One of the problems might have been the burner we were using. The burner with the hole in the middle seemed to do better at keeping the temperature where it needed to be, the other burner would not keep the oil hot enough unless the tank was at least half-full. We had to use three propane tanks. I will be looking at ways to improve the operations in the future. It is never good to have corn fritters that are still uncooked in the middle. We had this problem a few times when the oil would get to hot. It is also important to clean off the table with the syrup and powdered sugar on a regular basis. We had beautiful weather this year (high 60 s, low 70 s) which increased water sales. At the end of the day, we had to pack almost everything up and take it home. Because there is no way to ensure that nothing happens to the food and there is no security to protect against theft, it is not safe to leave things overnight. It is important to give the oil time to cool off before dumping it into another container. We mixed up 15 Corn Fritter batches on Saturday, swapping out and washing the mixing bowl halfway through the day. Sunday Operations: We had 20 bags of dry ingredients and 6 bags of wet ingredients left. We made up four more bags of wet ingredients for Sunday. We also got more ice, water, and exchanged the propane tanks. There was no Food Inspection scheduled for Sunday but we set everything up just like Saturday because they can come around at any time and do spot inspections. Sunday is definitely slower and less crowded than Saturday. We only used nine Corn Fritter batches on Sunday, making 24 batches total for the weekend. It is important to quit making fritters in time for the oil to cool off. Since you need to take everything with you the oil needs to be cool enough to be able to put it into a transportable storage container, unless you want to have hot oil sloshing around in your car. I put the cooled, used oil in the trash at the park each day before leaving. Future Considerations: Consider buying a 10-foot by 10-foot canopy that can be used for both the Bird Feeder and the Corn Fritter Booth.

4 Contact the Sugar Maple Festival committee to see about parking the Bird Feeder close to Bellbrock Park so that everything is handy. Attachments: 1. Supply List 2. Volunteer List 3. Funding Spreadsheet

5 Supply List Attachment 1 SUPPLIES QUANTITY NOTES Hand Washing Water/Water Jug Filled a water jug with about 2 gallons of hot water from home. Fryer The fryer hose needs replaced before using it. Propane Tanks Barrowed the tanks from the Bird Feeder. Went through three tanks on Saturday, but it might have been the burner we were using because there was still propane in the tank but it would not get the oil over 250 degrees. We refilled the tanks but the other burner did better Dish Sanitizer Used about 4 Oz. Barrowed some from the Bird Feeder. Some people use bleach but I find the commercial sanitizer a better option Cleaning Rags (in bleach water) Used Lysol spray along with paper towels Paper Towels 2 Rolls Used one and a half rolls. Used paper towels from the Bird Feeder so we did not have to buy any Coolers (2) 2 Used one from the Band Barn and one of my own Ziploc Bags 70 Bags Do not use a cheap brand from Aldi's for the liquid ingredients, just spend the extra money for Ziploc so you don't have to worry about them leaking. The cheap ones work for the dry ingredients Trash Can Barrowed the trash can from the Bird Feeder Tables Used the four tables from the Bird Feeder Canopy Used the Charlesworth's 13 x 13 canopy. This was not the best solution but it was all that we were able to come up with Power Cord Used the Charlesworth's power cord Paper Bowls 300 We bought Lb paper food trays and went through them all. We also used some paper bowls left from last year. Napkins 600 Bought 500 for this year and ended up using some others Powdered Sugar Shaker (2) There was on shaker in with the Fritter Booth stuff, but we really could have used a second one

6 Supply List Attachment 1 SUPPLIES QUANTITY NOTES Trash Bags 4 Barrowed trash bags from the Bird Feeder Dish Soap Barrowed dish soap from the Bird Feeder Oil Thermometers There was one with the Fritter Booth stuff and used others from the Bird Feeder Food Thermometers Tongs 2 There were two sets of tongs with the Fritter Booth stuff but they will be put in with the Bird Feeder stuff Stirring Spoons Plastic Forks Ice Cream Scoop Food Gloves Electric Skillet/Food Warmer Fire Extinguisher Cash Box 1 Box, Large Used two from the Bird Feeder There was one with the Fritter Booth stuff Barrowed a small electric skillet from the Greathouse's Called and barrowed one from the Bellbrook Fire Department Just used a file card box FOOD Maple Syrup 1 Gallon Bought a gallon of 2% maple syrup and 2 quarts of 20% maple syrup and mixed them together. I would start with a quart of each next year Powdered Sugar 2 LBS This was the right amount, had some left but would not go with any less Canned Corn 3 #10 Cans Oz Cans There is more corn than corn juice. It takes three regular cans to make two batches, number #10 cans have 6 batches of corn but only 4 of liquid Flour 35 LBS The avarage is about three cups of flour per pound Eggs 5 Dozen I bought 3 x 2.5 dozen but only used about two of the packages Milk 2 Gallons There are 16 cups in a gallon. I bought three gallons to make sure that I had enough but used almost two. Bottled Water 5 x 24 packs Bought seven packs because we almost went through 4 on Saturday alone, Sunday was not nearly as busy

7 Supply List Attachment 1 SUPPLIES QUANTITY NOTES Baking Powder 5 LBS This was just about the right amount, we did have some left. As a note three teaspoons equals one tablespoon Salt 2 Cups Bought a 26 ounce container which was ok Sugar 2 Cups Used my own sugar rather than buy five pounds for only two cups Oil 2 Gallons This was the right amount based on the pans we were using Ice 6 large bags It might be helpful just to have another cooler just for the extra ice Maple Cookies 10 Boxes/14 Cookies each I am amazed at how well these cookies sell. We sold 7 of the boxes on Saturday and ran out. I am told that Walgreen's has the same cookies

8 Volunteer Sign up Attachment 2 Saturday (26 Apr 14) Time Name 10:00 11:00 Mary/Scott Barr 11:00 1:00 Don Schrodi Julie Schrodi 1:00 3:00 Terry Farris Rebecca Montgomery Katey Montgomery 3:00 5:00 Kristie Sweeten Cindy Dixon 5:00 7:00 Louis Luedtke Diane Powers Jen Charlesworth Sunday (27 Apr 14) Time Name 11:00 1:00 Kelly Brode Elania Brode Kassandra Charlesworth 1:00 3:00 Christina Greathouse Jill Greider Rachel Greider 3:00 5:00 Mary Rose Horne Karen Dillhoff Missy Ralston

9 2014 CORN FRITTER BOOTH Sugar Maple Festival Attachment 3 Expense Item Supplier Quantity Cost Temporary Food License Greene County 1 $50.00 Maple Leaf Sandwich Cremes Trader Joe's 10 Boxes $32.90 Ice Drug Mart 3 Bags $9.57 Propane Exchange Lowe's 1 Tank $19.02 Eggs GFS 2 (2.5 Dozen) $7.98 Baking Powder GFS 1 (5 Lbs) $12.79 Salt GFS 1 (26 Oz) $0.99 Maple Syrup, 2% GFS 1 Gal $7.49 Maple Syrup, 20% GFS 2 (1 Quart) $21.98 Whole Corn GFS 3 (#10 Cans) $11.97 Flour GFS 25 Lbs $9.29 Food Trays, 2 Lbs GFS 1 (250 Count) $6.49 Liquid Fry Shortening GFS 1 Gal $7.29 Corn Oil GFS 1 Gal $8.79 Powdered Sugar GFS 2 Lbs $1.99 Plastic Forks GFS 1 Box $4.99 Food Gloves GFS 1 Box $3.99 Foil Pan, Half Size GFS 4 $3.96 Ice Drug Mart 3 Bags $9.57 Water Bottles, 24 pack Drug Mart 3 $8.97 Propane Exchange Drug Mart 3 Tanks $53.97 Napkins, 250 Count Aldi 2 Packages $2.98 Twinlock Bags, Gallon Aldi 2 Boxes $3.98 Whole Corn Aldi 24 (15.25 Oz) $11.76 Water Bottles, 24 pack Aldi 2 $4.58 Milk, 2% Aldi 2 Gal $5.78 Flour Aldi 2 (5 Lbs) $3.08 Total: $ Event Cost Total Cash Brought In $ $ Seed Money/Change $70.00 $ Expenses (see above) $ $ Profit to Boosters $450.00